Denture.



" S. G. SUPPLEE.

DENTURE.

APPLIOATIQN FILED 1130.12, 1907.

ANmzw E. GRAHAM cow PnowLNHoGRAPNERS,WASHINGTON LM:4

VPatented May 17, 1910.

SAMUEL Gr. SUPPLEE, OF NEW YORK, N. Y.

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DENTURE.

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Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 17, 1910..

Application led December 12, 1907. SeraI No. 406,156.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, SAMUEL Gr. SUPPLEE, a citizen of the United States, residing at the city, county, and State of New York, have invented certain new and useful Improvemcnts in Dentures, of which the following is a full, clear, and exact description.

My invention relates toV improvements in dentures, and particularly to what I will term a bar plate, in which the two spaced apart sections of the plate are connected in a unique and most effective manner.

The object of the invention is to provide in a denture of this character a construction which will give the greatest strength with the least possible weight and material, and to provide 'a plate which may be worn with great comfort and ease, the bar portion of the same being self-cleansing, thereby doing away with the danger of irritation. The construction is also such that there are no corners or edges presented to cause irritation.

In the drawings Figure 1 is a front perspective of a bar-plate of my improved construction in one form. Fig. 2 represents conventionally the lower gum and ridge with several natural front Vteeth therein. Fig. 3 is a view from the inner side of the plate as it appears when in place. Fig. 4 is a side elevation partly in section of a detail. Fig. 5 is an end elevation partly in section of'Fig. 4.

1 1 represent the two spaced-apart, sidesections of a lower-plate having certain artificial teeth 2 2 carried thereby in the usual manner.

3 3 are clips or clasps, so-called, which are preferably provided at the forward edges of the two side members 1 1, the same being adapted to coact with suitable anchorage teeth or crowns in the mouth.

4 4 are connecting bars of round or substantially round cross section and preferably tubular or hollow. The bar 4 is arranged to lie inside, while the bar 4a is arranged to lie outside of the ridge of the gum when the plate is in place.

In Fig. 2, 5 conventionally represents the gum, 6 6@L are natural teeth therein, 7 7 crown teeth, the latter furnishing an anchorage for the clasps 3 3. When the pla-te is in place, the clips pass over the anchorage teeth 7 7 in the usual manner and steady the plate, while the bars 4 4EL firmly hold the two sections of the plate against all danger of displacement, thus insuring safety and absolute comfort. By making the bars tubular or hollow, greater strength and rigidity is afforded, and by making them round or oval in cross section, or substantially so, they resist strains in all directions equally well. Even should either bar touch the gum, no dangerous pocket is formed in which food can become lodged to the discomfort of the wearer and the irritation of the tissues, because, as will be seen, the point of contact with the gum can only be on a very narrow line. I preferably,

however, so arrange and design the plateV that there is a slight space between each of the bars and the gum.

The plate members 1 1 may be formed of rubber or gold, or may be composite with a gold base and a rubber exposed surface. The ends of the bars 4 4L may be secured to the downwardly extending ianges of the plate sections 1 1 in any desired manner, as by flattening the ends and soldering, vulcanizing, or otherwise attaching the same to the respective plate flanges. In the preferred form, the clasps 3 and bar 4 are secured as shown in Figs. 4 and 5. The clasp 3 is provided with a pin 3a extending into the body portion of the plate-member 1. The end of the bar 4 is flattened and the flattened portion 4b is bent upward and hooked over the crown of the under surface of the plate-member 1 and is secured to the pin would appear in place and viewed from the inside. In some instances only one connecting bar may be employed, preferably the inner bar 4 which extends around the lingual surface of and below the neck of the teeth, which, because of its round cross section, possesses all of the aforesaid advantages, including a uniform resistance to strains in every direction, thus materially relieving t-he abutment teeth which now serve merely as a means to keep the plate properly seated.

What I claim is:

In a denture, two saddles bearing artificial teeth and arranged to be removably anchored tO two abutments On Opposite sides of metallic bar being directly connected to said the lower jaw, a round bar shaped t0 the metallic clips.

contour of the inner side of the arch of v the lower jaw and arranged When in place SAML' G' SUPPLEL slightly away from the gum tissues and be- Witnesses:

10W the margin of the gum, and including lVI. HOFFMAN,

metallic abutment engaging clips, said, LANGDON MOORE. 

